The
Scottish Building Federation has given its support to the Repairing
Britain campaign, which believes a focus on building repair and
maintenance can help secure 250,000 construction industry jobs at
risk during the recession.

There is direct synergy between the campaign and the Federation as
both are calling on the government to reduce VAT on property repairs
and maintenance to 5 percent, which will help stimulate the economy
and encourage the public and local authorities to take an interest
in the maintenance of their homes and community buildings.

Repairing Britain says up to half a million jobs could be lost in
the current downturn. However, it is highlighting that refurbishment
and improvement projects create many more jobs than new build
schemes, require skilled tradesmen and are more sustainable.

A consumer study by The Scottish Building Federation recently
revealed that spending on home improvement in Scotland would be
boosted by a minimum of £80 million over the next 12 months if a VAT
cut was introduced.

The findings showed that an additional 73,000 Scottish householders
would definitely invest in home improvements over the next year if
the UK Treasury chose to take advantage of a recent EU decision to
allow the minimum 5% VAT rate to be applied to this category of
spending.

Based on official statistics on average Scottish household
expenditure on home alterations and improvements per year, this
amounts to a boost in consumer spending of at least £80 million.

The survey has also revealed that, with a cut in VAT, the number of
Scottish householders seriously considering making improvements to
their home in the next 12 months would increase by 230,000,
potentially boosting spending by a further £256 million.

As part of its support of Repairing Britain, The Scottish Building
Federation will be encouraging its members to sign the campaign’s
petition on the Downing Street website,
http://petitions.number10.gov.uk/repairingbritain/ to request the
reduction in VAT on property repair work.

Michael Levack, Chief Executive of The Scottish Building Federation,
said: “Working with Repairing Britain will allow the Federation to
increase the volume of our calls to provide a much needed stimulus
to the economy.

“Alongside the significant boost to the economy, a cut in VAT would
also encourage measures to improve the energy efficiency of homes,
reducing carbon emissions and saving consumers money on energy
bills. In addition, it would significantly reduce the commercial
advantage of VAT-evading rogue traders, helping to eliminate them
from the building trade.”

Andy Mallice, who is spearheading the Repairing Britain campaign in
Scotland and is also Managing Director of Scottish property
maintenance and repair specialist, Rok, said: “The Scottish Building
Federation’s position on a cut in VAT directly correlates with the
aims of Repairing Britain and we are very pleased they have given
their support to the campaign.

“The wholesale reduction of VAT to 15 percent has effectively been a
failure. However, by targeting reductions towards key areas of the
economy, like the construction industry, a far smarter stimulus can
be achieved, which will safeguard jobs and improve the
infrastructure of UK homes and public buildings.”